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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Can Anything Do Justice to a Cover This Beautiful?

by Chautona Havig · 4 Comments

If the stunning cover of For Whom the Sun Sings doesn't grab you and hold you, the story will. A powerful story of truth and mankind's blindness to it. via @chautonahavig

A stack of packages waited for me when I woke up that morning. I opened the “boring” ones first. Laundry pods from Dropps.com, Bathroom scrubbing things from Amazon. A new journal I’d decided to make a part of my 2020 routine.

Confession. I actually already had it. But I had bought a new one from BaronFig.com (you get 10.00 credit if you order and so do I) because I didn’t want to write in the one I already had. Yes, you read that correctly. No, it makes no sense. #BecauseMe. Journal hoarders will understand, though. We’re a small, but kindred bunch.

Then came the fun ones. You know them by their golden envelopes—padded.

Books.

The first one was a novel I’d finally allowed myself to order. Two more books that I’d never heard of followed that—folks hoping I’d review them. Those are always fun days—especially when I think I’d like the book, and I did think I’d like one of those.

Then came a heavy one. As I ripped it open, the questions piled up. What was this one? I didn’t order anything else, did I?

Look, most review copies of books I request and receive aren’t hard copies, so when this one slipped out and jabbed my leg with a hard, sharp corner, I was both irked and pleased.

And then I saw the cover. Oh, my word. This cover is stunning. Especially as a hardback. I know that probably sounds weird, but it’s true. While it would be lovely in paperback, it wouldn’t have the presence that it has wrapped in its green and gold jacket.

Maybe it sounds silly—probably does, actually—but I swear my thumb caressed the cover. Excitement welled. I whispered the title. For Whom the Sun Sings.

If that wouldn’t entice someone, I don’t know what would.

Fun fact: I was just about to put a call out for suggestions for speculative fiction titles—sci-fi, dystopian, fantasy… any kind of “spec fic” for my new BecauseFiction podcast. And then last night, I pulled out this book to read #BecauseFiction, right? WOOHOO! Of course, I still need suggestions to make an episode worth the time, but I may have to do an entire one on this book alone. Whoa.

But even then as I stared at that lovely cover, my gut twisted into knots. I got nervous. Just because I’d requested and received this review copy from the top “spec fic” publisher in the Christian industry, didn’t mean anything. Or did it? One question repeated itself on a never-ending loop.

for whom the sun sings review

Note: Most links in this post are affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

Can Anything Do Justice to a Cover This Beautiful?

I’d never noticed it before, but speculative fiction is very much like a mystery. One by one, the clues to the world you step into unfold—just by you turning a page. Excellent authors, like W.A. Fulkerson, make it easy. All you have to do is turn the page.

If I could only choose one thing as my favorite thing about this book it would be the way in which Fulkerson wrote those story layers. Those who enjoy uncovering a mystery—who love catching the tiny nuances and fitting them together like the puzzle the book was designed to be—they’re given that opportunity. Hints from the very first words on the first page of the first chapter lead you to knowing and understanding everything he’ll show you.

However, if you don’t care to “gumshoe” your way through the story, you don’t need to. Much like a vivid painting that tells the entire tale on one page, the author has layered a hundred sheets of almost clear vellum over it. Page by page, those sheets are removed until you reach the end and see it all clearly, without ever needing the hints along the way.

But there’s so much more.

At first, some of the clumsy phrasing bothered me. It should. Because there was a reason for it. Occasionally, some modern phrasing would jar me out of the story and trip me up. Well done, Mr. Fulkerson. Very well done.

In Andrius, we have a sympathetic character—a hero limited first by ignorance, then by knowledge, and finally by fear and cruelty. His keen insights aren’t due to inherent brilliance but due to that instinct toward self-preservation. He behaves as a boy in his position should and would!

Additionally, every single character in this book behaves as is reasonable for who they are and where they are in the time of the story. Yes, there are character arcs—rises and dips—but they follow reasonable patterns that keep them from becoming unrealistically good or evil.

One of the most brilliant things I noted in For Whom the Sun Sings was the author’s use of description. Seriously, I wonder if there’s a single word in this book that he didn’t agonize over to get just right.

Best of all…the allegory.

Call it a parable, symbolism, or an allegory. I really don’t care. There’s a story within the story that begs this world to see what the author most wants it to—we’re blind without sight. We’re blind without the One who gives us sight. We can convince ourselves otherwise, but blind is blind. We need healing, not positive affirmation.

When people teach truth that hurts, sometimes we’re too blind to see that truth, so we create a new truth for ourselves.

But that new, so-called truth doesn’t change the facts.

We’re still blind.

I’ve never read anything by W.A. Fulkerson before. When the opportunity to request a free review copy appeared in my inbox, I snapped it up because the cover looked interesting, and I don’t read enough spec fic. I’m so grateful the publisher sent this book. I’ll be buying copies for gifts.  Today.

For Whom the Sun Sings 

For Whom the Sun SingsAbout the Book

Book:  For Whom The Sun Sings

Author: W.A. Fulkerson

Genre:  Young Adult Fiction / Religious / Christian / Fantasy

Release Date: March 17, 2020

The world is blind…then one boy is born with sight.

Nestled in a mountain haven, the remaining people of the world live in a village that is ordinary but strict. A severe peace must be kept severely, as they say. It’s all that keeps them from descending into the chaos that claimed the world a hundred years ago.
Led by the Prophet Valdas and his Regents, the villagers work, play, marry, and have families. They gather in ceremony once a year to celebrate their Day of Remembrance. Life is planned, precise, and predictable until the special abilities of eleven-year-old Andrius threaten to undermine it all.

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Comments

  1. Caryl Kane says

    March 30, 2020 at 10:46 am

    Wonderful review! This one sounds like a must read!

    Reply
  2. Andrea Stoeckel says

    March 30, 2020 at 9:44 am

    WOW! I know so many people who would love this…. MYSELF at the top pf the list. I am so looking forward to reading it, and I have suggested it to our library system as well. THank you Chautona

    Reply
  3. Linda Palmer says

    March 30, 2020 at 6:29 am

    This book sounds intriguing. I feel if you, Chautona like a book it must be good.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. For Whom The Sun Sings – Review + Giveaway – Emily Yager says:
    April 8, 2020 at 9:42 am

    […] Just the Write Escape, March 30 […]

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The Because Fiction Podcast

The Because Fiction Podcast
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Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Episode 448: A Chat with Nancy Naigle
byChautona Havig

 I fell in love with Nancy’s writing with The Shell Collector. Imagine my joy when I discovered she has a SEQUEL! Eeep! Listen in and discover which characters you’ll find in To Light the Way Forward and what’s coming next for one of America’s favorite authors!

note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

It’s been three years since Nancy and I had a chance to talk, and in that time, she’s been BUSY.  So in addition to falling in love with her character, Tug, and wanting to give him his own story, she’s written a small-town duet (and maybe we talked her into a third?) as well as a romcom duo!  Think we can talk her into a third of that series as well?  Because… SPOILER ALERT… we’re getting a third Shell Collector Series book, too! EEEP!

To Light the Way Forward by Nancy Naigle

A novel of overcoming deep loss, taking risks, and learning that life—and love—often surprises you when you least expect it, from the USA Today bestselling author of The Shell Collector. “Bringing to life characters you can’t help but fall in love with, Nancy Naigle goes straight to the heart with this story of tragedy turned to triumph. A poignant reminder to never give up hope.”—Sheila Roberts, author of The Best Life Book Club Feeling adrift after the loss of her husband, Rosemary sets out to visit an old friend on Whelk’s Island, undeterred by the threat of a hurricane. Before the storm hits, she finds herself at Tug’s Diner where she quickly connects with the owner, Tug. But the storm destroys the diner, compounding Tug’s grief from losing his love the previous year. The longer Rosemary stays, the more she sees Tug’s deep sadness and resolves to help him. Together with Tug and friends Amanda and Paul, they all pitch in to help the close-knit community recover and rebuild. As Amanda and Paul reconnect after losing touch during the storm, their plans to take things slow seem increasingly impractical. While Rosemary and Tug help the young couple navigate their relationship, they also find themselves building a friendship that begins to restore them both. But can that friendship convince them that love is possible for anyone who’s willing to take a risk—even those who never hoped they’d find it again?

Learn more about Nancy on her WEBSITEand follow her on GoodReads and BookBub.

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